All I See
by Clear Eyed Dreamer
Summary: One shot.  Bulma’s feeling old and obsolete, like no one needs her anymore.  Vegeta helps her to see the error in that feeling.  Set at the end of DBZ.  Bulma’s POV.


All I See

Summary : One shot. Bulma's feeling old and obsolete, like no one needs her anymore. Vegeta helps her to see the error in that feeling. Set at the end of DBZ. Bulma's POV.

A/N: Hope you enjoy and if I get some good reviews I may do some more one shots.

Sometimes I wonder. No, about nothing really in particular, just about life and my family. I know I'm getting older and so does everyone else, the signs are that obvious. I've got more then a couple wrinkles on my face and my hands are starting to tremble involuntarily. It's only when I try to work on little parts of machinery but it's still there and I still notice it. My hair isn't as full and gorgeous anymore and I find that I can't completely lose the weight I gained when I was pregnant was Bulla. She's four now… I wonder what I was thinking having a child at 47.

Here I lay on a lawn chair under a tree in my backyard. It's one of those lawn chairs that let you stretch right out and have no arm rests. I'm enjoying being able to relax. I don't go in the sun as much anymore, my skin burns easily now so I'm reduced to the shade. Bulla is running around the yard playing some game or another with Pan, Goten and Videl's daughter. I chuckle slightly at this thought. Goku and Chichi's grand daughter is one year older then my daughter.

She was, of course, a 'surprise'. Vegeta wouldn't purposefully spawn another 'brat', as he likes to call them, with me. But that's alright, I still love her with all my heart. She looks like a little version of me and I can't help but spoil her. He loves her too, I know he does. Myself and her are the only two that can get away with bossing him around. One of the most entertaining spectacles I've ever seen was when I walked in on my 3 year old daughter standing with her hands on her hips going toe to toe with my husband. Of course in the end, no matter how much he fought it, he still did what she asked of him.

Taking care of Bulla is really all I have to do anymore and I think that makes me feel even older. Trunks got my brain and has forcibly pushed me out of tending to Capsule Corp. business. I still go to all the meetings and have final say over decisions, but soon enough I know he'll take that away from me too. I know he's just eager to get into the business, but he makes me feel obsolete. After he takes over my position I know he'll grow to hate it quickly. He has too much of his father's free spirit in him.

I don't even have any training materials to fix for Vegeta. He's settled down over the years and doesn't train as hard anymore, breaking fewer training aids. I know his slowing down is done by choice, unlike mine.

Vegeta is a year older then me and has gone through so much more in his lifetime, but he barely looks older then thirty. I can't help but be jealous of the lack of aging that Saiyans go through. I don't know why he stays with me when he could get another woman, one younger and better looking. Whenever I manage to drag him out with the family I notice other women looking at him. He's prime meat, he's got a great physique and a lot of women would kill to be seen on the arm of a man that looks like him. But he never looks back at them, he never even glances their way. Some women are brash enough to come up to him and hit on him right in front of me, they soon regret it. I don't even have time to open my mouth before he glares at them and makes a comment that usually makes them run off crying. I smile at this thought but I still don't know why he stays with me. I can no longer offer him anything, his son could build training aids for him and give him a place to live, I feel obsolete with him too.

Bulla is the only one that needs me, but I fear that she'll soon turn away from me too. What teenager wouldn't be ashamed of having a mother in her sixties? I plan to cherish every moment I have with her before she realises just how old I am. I wish I could find a way to reduce my aging.

I hear a door open and turn my head to see Vegeta walk out the back door. Bulla yells 'daddy' and runs over to him. I look straight ahead again. She never runs to me like that, she's closer to her father. I know I shouldn't be jealous, but I am. I know I'm closer to Trunks then he is, does that make me selfish to want to be closer to both of my children then their father is?

I see Bulla run back over to Pan and the girls start to play once more. I can't stop the sigh that flows past my lips. I feel Vegeta's presence as he walks up beside me. I look up at him with a small smile.

He looks down at me. "Move over a little," he tells me, so I do and he sits down beside me.

"What are you up to today?" I ask him, enjoying having the side of his body right up against mine.

I can feel his shoulders move in a shrug.

A few minutes pass as we sit there watching the girls play. Pan is considerably more tom-boyish then Bulla is. She's interested in training, while Bulla wants nothing to do with it. "Do you ever wish Bulla was more like Pan?" I hear myself asking Vegeta. I didn't mean to say it, I meant to just think it.

He shakes his head, "I don't wish for her to be anything but what she is."

I look over and smile genuinely at him.

He looks back at me and gives me a rare smile, "it's been a while since I saw that."

"Saw what?" I ask, puzzled. What's he talking about?

"That smile, woman," he replies, "it's the first one is a long time that's reached your eyes."

"I didn't think you noticed," I told him and looked back out at the girls again. I can feel him staring at me for another few moments before he looks back at them too.

"I notice more then you think I do," he says quietly. "You're not the same woman you used to be."

I look back at him with narrowed eyes, "excuse me?"

He glances back to me, "you heard me, woman."

"I'm so sorry I can't be the woman I used to be for you, but I'm getting older!" I practically scream at him. I quickly remember the girls though and hush my voice, "I can't help it."

He rolls his eyes, "get older all you want, I don't care. I'm not talking about that, I'm talking about your sad disposition lately."

"Did you ever think that maybe that's why?" I ask him. "Did you ever stop and think that maybe I'm feeling old? And that maybe I feel completely un-needed by everyone around me?" I can't help the small sob that escapes. "Just face it, I'm obsolete, Vegeta, why don't you just trade me in for a newer model?"

He frowns, "don't talk about yourself like you're a machine. You're not. You're a living, breathing, intelligent woman." He pauses for a second, "besides, I'm a year older then you."

I scoff, "but you don't look it."

"And neither do you," he replies.

I'm a little confused now. How could he possibly think I don't look older? "Come on, I have wrinkles around my eyes and in the corners of my mouth. You know I look old."

He smiles slightly and places his hand gently under my chin to keep me from looking away from him. "just because you have them, doesn't mean I see them. I don't focus on your imperfections, I focus on the…" he pauses, which signals that he's going to say something out of his nature and is struggling with it, "on the beautiful woman you are. And so does the brats and anyone else who actually knows you."

I'm stunned, I truly am. I think this is the first time he's ever said anything so nice to me and I can't get my head around it. I can feel tears start to well up behind my eyes and I try to hold them back but to no avail as one trickles down my cheek.

"Oh, don't do that," he says, rolling his eyes. I know he hates it when I get emotional. "If I knew you were going to get like this I would have kept my mouth shut," he grumbles.

I lean over and kiss his cheek. "Thank you," I told him, "even though I know you don't want to hear it."


End file.
